Harold Fannin Jr. on track to make history for the Cleveland Browns

This Cleveland Browns draft class has been a smash out of the park for the team, as they have brought in five quality starters, with some of them with much higher upside.

These include defensive tackle Mason Graham in the first round, running back Quinshon Judkins in the second, linebacker Carson Schwesinger in the second, running back Dylan Sampson in the fourth, and quarterback Shedeur Sanders in the fifth.

The Browns draft steal may have come in the third round with tight end Harold Fannin Jr. though. Fannin has hauled in 59 receptions, which is seventh among all tight ends and second among rookies. Along with 619 receiving yards, fourth in rookies, and four touchdowns.

His 59 receptions puts him just seven off of tying the Browns rookie record for receptions, which is 66 set by Kevin Johnson in 1999, and eight more receptions will give him the record. Fannin is now at fourth all time for the franchise in this mark, behind Greg Little in 2011 and Duke Johnson in 2015, both ending the year with 61 receptions.

Fannin is also cracking into the leaderboards of receiving yards for a rookie in Browns history as he now sits at 8th all-time. He has a very real chance of finishing in the top five of this category, as he needs just 90 more yards in the final four games to achieve that mark.

Fannin has already set the record for tight ends, as his game on Sunday propelled him over the legendary Ozzie Newsome who finished his rookie year with 589 yards in 1978.

In that Tennessee game, Fannin caught eight passes for 114 yards and mossed Titans defensive back Xavier Woods for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter. The eight receptions and 114 receiving yards were both career-highs for the former Bowling Green Falcon.

Shedeur Sanders has elevated Fannin’s game in his first couple of starts in the NFL, as Fannin has caught 15 balls for 197 yards and two touchdowns in just three games. While Dillon Gabriel was starting for six games, Fannin averaged 43.6 yards per game, and Joe Flacco, starting the first four games he got 40 yards per game.

In the small sample size with Sanders, Fannin is at 65.6 yards per game.

Fannin is also tied for third in the NFL on broken tackles on receptions this season with six. He is also third in rookies in yards after catch with 329, and fifth-most among tight ends. His 60 yards after the catch vs the Titans were a season-high. 125 of those 329 yards after catch have come in the past three games.

It is amazing to watch a player like Fannin, who grew up in Canton, Ohio, attended McKinley High School in Canton, then go to Bowling Green in northwest Ohio, get drafted to his hometown team of the Browns and dominate his rookie season. The best part, Fannin is just 21 years old.